It was a bad day to be standing in the way of the Yelm Tornados on homecoming night. After a 57-36 loss last week at home to Graham-Kapowsin, Yelm made the necessary adjustments and routed Bonney Lake, 44-7, Friday, Oct. 11.
The Tornados hadn’t played one week after a loss in over five years, as their last two losses ended their season in the playoffs. Head coach Jason Ronquillo, who took full accountability for the defeat last week, wanted to ensure he spent every waking moment getting his team prepared for the Panthers and beyond.
“I’ve been depressed all week. I haven’t slept. I was pissed off that I got my ass kicked last weekend,” he said. “It’s been seven days of just making sure we’ve got all the details right and making sure the guys are on point for this game and understand the appropriate mentality. I think we turned the page.”
The Tornados defense, which allowed 57 points and 535 yards last week, quickly turned the page in the first quarter by forcing a turnover on downs on Bonney Lake’s opening drive. With the ball in Panthers territory, Yelm took four plays to find the end zone thanks to a 6-yard rushing touchdown by Marcus Ronquillo.
On the ensuing two-point conversion, senior lineman Chris Hauss lined up in the backfield and dove into the end zone.
“Every year, we always try to get a lineman a touch and get them into the end zone, and it just happened to be that night for Chris Hauss,” Jason Ronquillo said.
Jacob Ford gave Yelm the ball inside Panthers territory once again with a punt return to the 39, and the Tornados speedster finished off the drive by trucking a defender en route to a 13-yard rushing score.
The Tornados dialed up another trick play for a two-point conversion, as junior wide receiver/defensive back Tonye Penn took a direct snap into the end zone to make it 16-0 Yelm.
Yelm’s defense was lights out in the first quarter, holding Bonney Lake without a first down and 0 yards on four possessions. Hauss and Jonah Smith terrorized the Panthers offense with multiple tackles for loss.
Despite Yelm starting a drive with a first and 30, quarterback Parker Myers swiftly made up for the holding penalties, first with an 11-yard run and then a 46-yard touchdown pass to Jameson Patin to make it 23-0. The catch and run for Patin marks his fourth straight catch that resulted in a touchdown.
The Tornados nearly scored on a fourth straight drive as Maurice Williams caught a pass from Myers and raced toward the end zone, but the ball was stripped before he reached the goal line, and Bonney Lake recovered in the end zone.
Yelm turned it over deep in Panthers territory on consecutive drives in the second quarter after Marcus Ronquillo lost the ball churning for extra yards.
A 45-yard completion from Myers to Williams set up a Myers 3-yard rushing score to give Yelm a 30-0 advantage at halftime.
The Tornados extended their lead in the third quarter as Ford tallied his second rushing touchdown of the night and Ethan Owens, who received the majority of carries in the second-half, scored from 1 yard out to force a running clock. Bonney Lake finally scored over four minutes into the fourth quarter, but Yelm ran out the clock and sealed the 44-7 victory.
Yelm’s defense held Bonney Lake to 141 total yards in the game and was led by Owens with 10 tackles, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery. Smith added three tackles and one sack and Bol Bol tacked on six tackles, one sack and two tackles for loss.
“They took to the coaching well this week, and they played really sound football tonight,” Jason Ronquillo said of the defense.
On offense, Myers threw for 228 yards and one touchdown on 11-of-14 passing. Owens led the Tornados with 75 rushing yards and a score on 10 carries, and Marcus Ronquillo recorded 66 yards and a touchdown on nine carries. Williams enjoyed a big day with 112 receiving yards on five receptions.
Owens credited the team for bouncing back after an emotional week and taking care of business.
“I’m not gonna lie, we were a little pissed off. It was a loss that we didn’t want, and we came back not for blood, but we were angry,” he said. “We wanted a revenge game. I felt like I needed to step up and we needed to step up as a team because I know we’re better. We’re gonna go to state. I believe that fully.”
Yelm’s offensive line was stout Friday night, keeping the pocket clean for Myers and opening holes for the run game. Center Shane Creegan, who enjoyed a halftime celebration as a member of the YHS homecoming court, said the team focused on the little details in order to rebound from the Graham-Kapowsin game.
“We wanted to show that we can still play football at a high level, and I think we proved it tonight,” he said. “We had a disappointing week last week rushing the ball around 20 times for only two yards per carry. Our main goal this week was to prove that we’re still a dominant offensive line, and I think we proved it tonight.”
Yelm (5-1, 2-1 South Puget Sound League), which had won 37 straight regular season games before last week’s loss, will look to create a new winning streak against Bethel (3-3, 1-2 SPSL) at Art Crate Field on Friday, Oct. 18 at 7 p.m.
